Angel set to spread wings over market town again

Sculptor OH Boyd spent three months carving an exact copy of the angel to replace one which dominated the marketplace in the north Lincolnshire town of Brigg for 150 years.

Standing 5ft tall, with wings spread, the angel is one of the best known features of the town.

She will go back over the balcony on the Angel Suite, formerly Angel Hotel, and where Winston Churchill once gave an electioneering speech, once she has been gilded, hopefully helping preserve her for another 150 years.

Deputy Mayor Coun Trevor Foster said: “The crowning glory of the area has always been the angel. It’s a major part of North Lincolnshire’s heritage and Brigg’s so it is essential that it is preserved.”

Mr Boyd said: “She was virtually falling apart, and incredibly heavy, as it was so full of water. It’s been a first departure for me making an exact copy, as I normally work freely, in effect it is doing a portrait. When she goes back I can guarantee that no one will be able to tell the difference - she will be resplendent in her gilding.”

Among many commissions over the years including for the late multi-millionaire publisher Felix Dennis, Mr Boyd sculpted the crown for the new State Coach. He now hopes to get similar work from museums, breweries and other bodies, to enable him to take on an apprentice, to pass on the skills he has gained over a lifetime.